I am also *so bad* at starting friendships because of fear of rejection. So how are we supposed to have this intense platonic bond that may or may not involve platonic make out sessions if we are both scared? A real dilemma.
Maybe the solution isn't trying harder. Maybe it's going softer. Take a breath. Drop our shoulders a little. What if we just… melt for a second? Not gone. Just quiet. Nothing to prove. Nothing to decide. Funny how everything feels easier when you stop standing so upright and let yourself sink a bit, isn't it?
I have re-read this no less than 10 times since it showed up in my inbox, anon. You should know that.
The first time was by far the best because I 100 percent glazed over for a hot minute afterwards. But also, it has continued getting better.
David Jenkins and Taika Waititi talk about the show’s passionate fandom, Stede and Blackbeard’s romance and what’s next for the HBO Max seri
It goes without saying that the romance between Stede and Blackbeard is the main throughline of “Our Flag Means Death.” Can you talk about their dynamic and why it’s so important to the show?
Waititi: It’s a romantic comedy in the best sense of the word. The romance is also the drama, and the comedy is what it is. So, tonally, it’s right in my wheelhouse — this is the kind of the balance of tone that’s with everything that I’ve ever made. Also, what I love about the show is that none of the characters talk about being gay. It’s never treated like, “Oh my God, it’s two men.” [David] never mention[s] it in that way.
Jenkins: I thought it would be better to just skip that. It’s just accepted. You can get to different places more quickly. That’s one of the benefits of not having it kind of dominate the narrative. The thing about being seen that really touches me, when people say that, is it’s the core of the show. Ed sees Stede and Stede really sees Ed, and they are maybe the only people in their lives who have seen each other on that level. I think you want to honor and make everyone feel accepted, but it’s so much more about these two people just negotiating each other. And the fact that they happen to be the same sex, it’s not incidental, but it was very conscious on my part, to not make it the focus of the show.
I really hope we get more Misha and Alex panels. Their energy together is really peak chaotic good. Legit, they’re sitting there with smirks as they say things like “Yes, the angel is gay and autistic, his child is non-binary, drugs are cheap and available, the only way this entrance could be topped is with oil and an erection.”
